Inlays and Onlays
INLAYS AND ONLAYS 
Contents 
INTRODUCTION AND HISTORY 
 CAST METAL
RESTORATIONS
          - INDICATIONS
AND CONTRAINDICATIONS 
          - ADVANTAGES
and DISADVANTAGES 
          -
FUNDAMENTALS OF CAVITY PREPARATIONS 
Tooth preparations for Class II Inlays and modifications
Tooth preparations for cast metal Onlays and modifications  
ESTHETIC INLAYS AND ONLAYS
Recent advancements                     
DEFINITIONS 
Class II inlay: involves the occlusal and proximal surfaces
of a posterior tooth and may cap one or more, but not all, of the cusps.
Class II onlay: involves the proximal surfaces of a posterior
tooth and caps all the cusps 
CAST GOLD RESTORATIONS 
Become less popular in recent years because of emphasis on
esthetics but it remains an excellent restoration with a long history of
clinical success
If used with care, gold alloy is considered to have the
greatest longevity of any restorative material used in dentistry.
   Gold alloys can
be used for 
Intracoronal restorations(inlays)
Extracoronal restorations( full coverage crowns)
Combination of both(onlays or partial coverage crowns) 
INDICATIONS 
LARGE RESTORATIONS
ENDODONTICALLY TREATED TEETH
TEETH AT RISK FOR FRACTURE
DENTAL REHABILITATION WITH CAST METAL ALLOYS
DIASTEMA CLOSURE AND OCCLUSAL PLANE CORRECTION
REMOVABLE PROSTHODONTIC ABUTMENT 
CONTRAINDICATIONS 
HIGH CARIES RATE
YOUNG PATIENTS
ESTHETICS
SMALL RESTORATIONS
ADVANTAGES 
Strength: gold alloy rarely fractures 
Biocompatibility
Low wear : gold wears at a rate similar to enamel so does not
cause accelerated wear of opposing tooth
Casts easily and accurately 
Control of contours and contacts because of indirect
technique for fabrication 
DISADVANTAGES 
Number of appointments and higher chair side time 
Temporary restoration required
Higher Cost  than
direct restorations
Technique sensitive
Splitting forces 
Materials available 
PURE GOLD
NOBLE METAL ALLOYS
BASE METAL ALLOYS
CERAMIC        ESTHETIC
INLAYS & ONLAYS
COMPOSITE 
INITIAL PROCEDURES 
Occlusion : evaluation of contacts done before
anesthesia or tooth preparation
Evaluation should include: 
(1) Occlusal contacts in maximum intercuspation (MI)
where teeth are brought into full interdigitation 
(2) Occlusal contacts that occur during mandibular movements
Evaluate occlusal relationships in MI (A), and during
mandibular movements (B and C). 
Pattern of occlusal contacts influences 
1)   
Preparation design
2)   
Selection of interocclusal records
3)   
Type of articulator or cast development needed 
ANESTHESIA 
Local anesthesia of tooth to be operated
Adjacent soft tissues 
Considerations for Temporary Restorations 
Consideration must be given to method used to fabricate
temporary restoration. 
Preoperative impression required to reproduce occlusal,
facial & lingual surfaces. 
BASIC PRINCIPLES OF CAST RESTORATIONS 
CONSERVATION OF TOOTH STRUCTURE: 
Preparation should be made as CONSERVATIVELY  as possible 
    -To maximize strength
of remaining tooth
      structure 
    -Lessen likelihood
of post operative sensitivity &
      pulpal pathosis 
    -Decrease
likelihood of tooth fracture
RETENTION AND RESISTANCE FORM 
Correctly incorporated, they resist unseating vertical,
lateral and oblique forces acting on the restoration during function or
parafunction 
Retention form resists forces attempting to dislodge
restoration parallel to the path of insertion
Resistance form resists forces attempting to dislodge a
restoration obliquely to the path of insertion 
Inlay taper 
Basic requirement of all intracoronal cast restorations  is a DIVERGENCE of the cavity
walls from floor of the preparation externally.
Similarly  for all
extra coronal cast restoration walls must converge from cervical to occlusal
surface 
Line of draw 
Describes the path of insertion and removal of the casting 
It is the axis of taper( for a class I or II generally
parallel to long axis of tooth)
It bisects the angle of convergence of tapered cavity walls
to a point of their intersection 
Factors affecting retention & resistance 
1. Resulting stress
2. Final tooth preparation geometry
3. Luting material type & thickness
4. Tooth & crown surface texturing
Pulpal considerations 
Prior to preparation, pulp should be tested for vitality
& radiographs be taken. 
Endodontic therapy should be done prior to restoration if
required 
Best pulpal protection: a thick layer of sound dentin(RDT>1mm)
If RDT<1mm, sealer or liner indicated, followed by an
observation period to determine if tooth remains symptom-free. 
FINISH LINES 
Term “finish line” refers to the border of preparation where
prepared tooth surface meets the unprepared surface
Type depends on clinical situation
A smooth, well defined finish line is beneficial regardless
of the design
Common types for cast restorations: knife edged, chamfer and
shoulder
Knife edged margin 
Requires least amount of tooth reduction
Commonly used with a bell shaped tooth
Difficult to discern to a die & tends to result in over
contoured restorations
Difficult to wax and cast accurately
Susceptible to distortion under occlusal forces
Commonly used on mesial aspect of a tipped molar, on lingual
aspects of mandibular molars, on root surfaces of periodontally involved teeth
Chamfer configuration 
Preferred finish line for cast gold extracoronal restorations
More conservative than shoulder & generates less stress
at cement interface
Provides adequate room for its reproduction & adequate
thickness of gold 
Shoulder configuration 
Used primarily where bulk is needed to strengthen restoration
at the margins
Used in all porcelain or metal ceramic restorations
Least conservative for cast gold
Chamfer/shoulder with bevel 
Bevelled margin-easier to detect in an impression 
Makes margins of restorations more burnishable 
Bevel :  a bevel is
a finish line that follows the contour of the tooth and should be used only on
finish lines that are more or less perpendicular to the path of insertion 
Flare:  flare differs
from a bevel in that a flare is a geometric plane inclined slightly to the path
of insertion and cutting through the contour of the tooth . 
A proper  flare will be
narrower gingivally becoming wider occlusally 
As the occlusogingival height increases, the occlusal
divergence should increase 
Lengthy preparations with minimal divergence (more parallel)
may present difficulties during pattern withdrawal, trial seating, withdrawal
of the casting, and cementing 
Onlays 
Indications: 
1) Large restorations/caries
       Teeth that
have been weakened by-
                                     -  caries or
                                     - large
failing restorations,
(but where facial and lingual surfaces are relatively
unaffected
  Cuspal
protection
Armamentarium 
Enamel hatchet
Chisel
Gingival marginal trimmer
No.271 carbide bur
No.169L carbide bur
Flame shaped fine grit diamond
Round end fine grit diamond
Articulating paper
Finishing and polishing kit
Tooth preparation for MOD onlay 
INITIAL PREPARATION
Occlusal reduction
No.271 tapered fissure carbide and round-end diamond bur used
•      Uniform
depth cuts are placed-one on crest of each triangular ridge and one in each
major developmental groove
•      1.5 mm
clearance on functional cusps
•      1.0 mm
clearance for nonfunctional cusp 
Functional Cusp Bevel
  No.271
carbide and Round end tapered diamond bur used
  Make depth
orientation cuts on the outward facing inclines of the functional cusp
   Should be 1.5mm deep
Occlusal Shoulder
No.271 tapered carbide bur used
On buccal cusp of mandibular and palatal cusp of maxillary
Provides for greater bulk of metal on functional cusp
Increased resistance
Reinforced margin (more durable)
1 mm wide
preparation is gingivally below the functional outer aspect
of the facial cusp to allow occlusion exclusively on restorative material and
not on the interface.
Prepare pulpal floor along the central groove extend mesially
and distally, facially and lingually 
•      Should be
1.0mm shallower than the isthmus in an inlay because occlusal surface has been
reduced already
 Proximal box
preparation
  No.271
tapered fissure carbide bur,169L bur used
  Mesial and
distal proximal boxes are prepared to the level of the gingival crest 
  Gingival
floor should be 1mm wide
  Proximal
clearance = 0.5mm
  FINAL
PREPARATION
  Removal of
infected carious dentin and defective restorative materials and pulp protection
  If  proximal box & occlusal step have been
extended properly then any remaining caries or restorative material should be
visible & be removed.
  All
horizontal surfaces i.e.pulpal floor, gingival floor and shoulder should be
smoothened using an end cutting bur
Finishing bevels
Gingival bevel-
 flame diamond bur used
 0.5mm to 1mm wide 
 Placed along the
entire gingival floor of the box
 Should blend with the
flares without forming an undercut.
Facial and lingual bevels-
Flame diamond used
0.5mm wide
Placed on buccal (maxillary)and lingual (mandibular)occlusal
surfaces, should be blended into flares.
Bevel should result in 40 degrees marginal metal
    Shallow (0.3mm) retention grooves 
    cut in facioaxial and linguoaxial line angles
    with No. 169L carbide bur.
    important for retention when the prepared
tooth 
     is short.
    Grooves are in dentin near the DEJ and do not
undermine the enamel. 
Enhancement of resistance and retention forms 
In the preparation of a tooth that has been grossly weakened
by caries or previous filling materials and is prone to fracture under occlusal
load the resistance form that cusp capping provides should be augmented by the
use of skirts, collars or facial /lingual surface groove extensions.
Skirt preparation
Collar preparation
Slot preparation
Skirt preparation 
Skirts are thin extensions of the facial or lingual proximal
margins of the cast restoration that extends from the primary flare to
terminate just past the transitional line angles of tooth
Advantages
conservative method of improving both resistance &
retention forms
 relatively atraumatic
-removes very little dentin usually entirely in the enamel
Disadvantage 
Increases the display of metal on the facial and lingual
surfaces –avoided on the mesiofacial margin of the maxillary molar and
premolars. The other three line angles can be skirted
Indications
when the proximal portion of 
a classII for an onlay is being prepared and the lingual wall is
partially or totally absent the retention is 
provided by skirt preparation of the facial margin and vice versa
recommended when proximal contours and contacts are to be
extended more than the normal dimensions
when splinting posterior teeth  together with onlay. The additional retention
and resistance is very useful  because of
the  stress on each unit
Preparation:
Preparation done with slender flame shaped  fine grit instrument 
Maintain the long axis of the instrument parallel to the long
axis of the line of withdraw and translate the 
instrument just beyond the line angle of the tooth
A 140ocavosurface angle should be present
Use less than ½ of the tip of the instrument and translate it
from the entrance cut  towards the
proximal box to blend the skirt with the 
primary flare and the  proximal
gingival bevel
Do not over reduce the line angle as the bracing effect will
be lost  .Slightly round any sharp angles
Collar Preparation 
To increase the retention and resistance form when preparing
a weakened tooth for a MOD onlay capping all the cusps , a facial or lingual
collar or both may be provided
To reduce the display of metal the facial surfaces of the
maxillary premolars and the first molars are usually not prepared for collar.
Preparation
use a no.271 carbide bur at high speed parallel to the line
of withdraw 
prepare a 0.8mm deep shoulder around the lingual surface to
provide for a collar about 2-3mm high occlusogingivally 
To provide for  a
uniform thickness of metal, the occlusal 1mm of this  reduction should follow the original contour
of the tooth
Bevel the gingival margin of the shoulder to result in a 30
degree metal angle at the margin
Slot preparation 
After cusp reduction the vertical walls of the occlusal step
portion of the preparation are reduced so they provide very little retention
Form. In such cases necessary retention can be obtained by making a slot
preparation
It is indicated in short clinical crowns and in  cusps that have been reduced
A slot removes more tooth structure than for a  pin but it is less likely to cause
microfractures in dentin
Preparation
 Use a no.169L carbide
bur
 Long axis should be
parallel to the line of 
    withdraw
 Is cut in the dentin
it should be placed midway 
    between pulp and
DEJ
 Mesiodistally the
width of the slot should be 
    equal to diameter
of the bur
 Faciolingually  2mm
 Depth 2mm gingival of
normal position of pulpal floor
 It should be in dentin
Modifications in case of maxillary premolar and first molar 
To decrease display of metal on facial cusp of maxillary
premolar and mesiofacial cusp of 1st 
molar occlusal reduction on facial cusp ridge should be only 0.75 to 1mm
Cusps should not receive counter bevel but should be stubbed
or blunted by sandpaper or disk or fine grit diamond to create a surface of
0.5mm width
To decrease display of metal the mesiofacial margin is
minimally extended facially of contact so that it is barely visible hence
secondary flare is omitted here. 
Materials used 
1) Alloys of gold –high gold alloys, low gold alloys
type II(medium)
Composition- Au-77%, Cu-7%, Ag-14%, Pd- 1%, balance- Sn, Zn,
Fe.
2) palladium-silver alloys
3) Alloys of base metal 
4) Porcelain
Preparation for porcelain( according to Vimal Sikri)
Functional cusp reduction=1.5mm for premolar, 2mm for molar
Nonfunctional cusp reduction= 1-1.5mm
Collar should be prepared-width=1-1.5mm
Occlusal step=1.5-2mm depth
Width of isthmus 1.5mm minimum
Axial reduction- 1.5mm
Cavosurface margin not to be beveled
For CAD/CAM Since the computer cannot accurately read bevels,
convexities, steps or undefined angles, the preparation walls should be
straight, uniform and flat 
ESTHETIC INLAYS AND ONLAYS
James Summitt, third edition 
General considerations 
Preparations for ceramic and resin composite inlays and
onlays same. 
Divergent, relatively non-retentive preparation recommended
due to ease of placement
Resistance form may be incorporated with rounded proximal
boxes but grooves should not be used
Resistance & retention form mainly provided by adhesion
to enamel & dentin.
Walls & floors of preparation should be smooth & even
Internal angles should be rounded to enhance adaptation of
restorative material
Occlusal reduction should be anatomic & uniformly, a min
of 2mm for strength
Bevels should be avoided because thin margins of resin
composite & porcelain are susceptible to chipping.
When esthetic blend of material & tooth is important, as
on facial surf of max. premolar, long chamfer may be placed
Adhesive cementation 
Resin luting cement recommended as it bonds to enamel, dentin
& restorative material
Luting resin cement limits microleakage, enhances strength of
restoration & tooth
Dual cured luting resin and dual cure dentin bonding agents
should be used to bond all indirect posterior bonded restorations
Resin composite inlays & onlays 
Fabricated intraorally or on a cast
Advantages over direct restorations:
Better contacts & contours
Polymerization shrinkage not a problem
Types : Direct 
                
Indirect 
Direct resin inlays 
Fabricated directly on tooth
After preparation, matrix placed on tooth
Preparation is bulk filled with resin composite & light
cured from all directions
Matrix is removed & inlay is teased out of the
preparation
Inlay is then postcured, tried in, adjusted & bonded 
Direct/indirect resin inlays 
An impression is made of prepared tooth & cast is poured
Master cast must be ready to use in a short time
Master die can be made from a silicone material or a master
cast made from die stone
Restoration is fabricated on die & undergoes a
primary(light cured) & secondary polymerization 
Indirect resin inlays & onlays 
Resin inlays & onlays are available t/h commercial labs
Newer gen of resin materials termed Ceromers(ceramic
optimized polymers)  used
Four ceromer products:
Artglass(Heraeus Kulzer)
Belleglass(Kerr)
Targis(Ivoclar)
Skulptur  fibreKor(
Jeneric/Pentron) 
Have greater durability, fracture toughness, wear resistance,
esthetics & repairability 
Thank You..!! 
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